One of the founders of Conceptual art\, Joseph Kosuth is bes
t known for his pioneering text-based works. Like a number of Conceptual ar
tists\, Kosuth has written many theoretical treatises on art. His seminal 1
969 essay “Art after Philosophy” is a primer to understanding Conceptualism
and sets forth its core premise: that art as an idea is more important tha
n its physical reality.

Over nearly four decades Kosuth has expl
ored the relationships of art\, language\, and philosophy\, using a wide ra
nge of media. 'À Propos (Réflecteur de Réflecteur) #58' was origin
ally one component in a monumental\, labyrinthine installation consisting o
f eighty-six quotations from dozens of philosophers\, fabricated in vinyl l
etters on glass\, backlit in neon. The quotations\, affixed to the walls in
vertical and horizontal patterns\, do not add up to a single worldview but
rather form a multiplicity of intellectual voices played out in an intrica
te intellectual game. The phrase in this piece is taken from the social ant
hropologist Claude Levi-Strauss and refers back to Karl Marx and Sigmund Fr
eud. 'À Propos' thus evokes the way philosophy is built on argumen
ts by and with earlier thinkers.